There was a recent boom of interest in Thailand for the past 15 years and it rapidly converted into the top five destinations for tourism worldwide. Actually, Bangkok is now ranked first in the most visited city in the world in 2016 passing stronghold tourist cities like New York, London, and even Paris. And being the main hub for tourists to reach its beautiful beaches, it’s no surprise it gained that rank. I love Thailand, it’s just an amazing country for so many reasons, especially for its amazingly well-preserved traditions and culture, the kindness of its people, the receptivity of the Thai people and their openness to the world, Its amazing food and its stunning tropical land and impressive beaches. These are just the main characteristics of what comes out of my mind as I write this article, but it expands way more than only this.
And just as if it wasn’t enough, you get all this at a bargain! To my eyes and compared to all the other countries I’ve been to, Thailand is one of the best quality/price holidays you can get of any country. As an example, for the price of a 2 days holiday in the Maldives, you get 1 week on the French Riviera and about 1 month in Thailand in the same conditions. If you only have a week off every year like most North Americans, that doesn’t weight as much as for Europeans which have over 6 weeks off per year in some cases. So having to fund 6 weeks of holiday is not as easy, they can’t just go to Vegas and through their hard earned money out the windows. They need to plan, budget and calculate well to make it work. For backpackers and digital nomads like me, it’s not a problem as we have several ways to travel on the cheap. Needless to say, coming to Thailand as a backpacker, you will be able to live out of 2 to 3 times less money than what you spend on a sedentary lifestyle in North America and in most European countries.
For a Digital Nomad, Thailand is priceless. In my opinion, it is currently the capital of digital nomads of the world and if you are new to this kind of traveling, you should definitely think about coming here. Many digital nomads come to start their new life here, slashing the cost of living that they would have back home by 2 to 3 times while enjoying a lifestyle in Bangkok which would only accessible to the rich in their home country. Or even better, some just go straight to an island of their choice, rent a 10 a night bungalow on the beach and work with an internet connection on their phone. I’ve done that myself back in 2006 when I first got there, I was blown away by the concept, sitting on rock off the shore surrounded by waves smashing around and working on my laptop connected to my Motorola Razr over an edge internet connection… Sounds ages ago right? But at the time, that was pretty revolutionary as a concept! I personally enjoy Bangkok nowadays as a base to set my computer, getting a nice one-month Airbnb apartment at a cheap price in one of those many towers available for rent around the Sukhumvit Neighbourhood, and enjoy Thailand Lifestyle as a whole while I work on my web projects. That’s digital nomad lifestyle in a nutshell, and if you want to learn more about it, be sure to follow my guides about digital nomad lifestyle and how to become one yourself.
Koh Samui in Southern Thailand
Having spent several journeys in Thailand over the past 15 years of traveling around the world (pretty much every time I come to Asia), I have seen this little paradise convert into the backpacking hub it is today. Koh San Road is no stranger to any backpacker who landed in Bangkok and in many cases will be the only memory that will remain in their head. This party street packed with cheap hotels and bars is a definite a must see, but I rarely go there anymore as I think Bangkok is much more than just Koh San Road. Bangkok has so much more to offer and I highly recommend to people to stay around the Sukhumvit area to enjoy a more “normal” Bangkok lifestyle with “normal” Thai people not making a living out of to ripping off tourists because Thais are truly amazingly nice to meet and hang out with! It’s no secret Thailand has been already very popular since the 60s with the old Europeans coming to relive their youth in Pattaya and Phuket, but the student backpacking community took it by storm and each year it seems like everybody wants to come to enjoy its wild parties, beautiful beaches, and amazing culture! So nowadays, Thailand has evolved into a destination for everybody, even luxury tourism will find a 5-star hotel selection the suits their needs.
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Don’t forget to visit the full Thailand Guide to get all the details on this amazing country.
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